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A number of frequently asked questions concerning food hygiene are listed below. If you wish to discuss any matter in greater detail please contact our Food Office.
Q1 I'm thinking of starting a food business, what do I need to do?
Q2 Can I run a food business from my home?
Q3 How often do food businesses have to be inspected?
Q4 Who will inspect your business?
Q5 What are you entitled to expect from inspecting officers?
Q6What powers do authorised officers have?
Q7Do I have to register my mobile food vehicle with the council in whose area I trade within?
Q9 What temperature should you store food at?
Q10Do staff that handle food have to be trained in food hygiene?
Q11 How do you keep a check on the food sold in the Borough?
Q12 Should my staff wear disposable gloves when handling food?
Q13 How can I make a complaint about an item of food I have bought?
Q14 Do you have a food-sampling programme?
Q16 What do 'use by' and 'best before' dates mean?
Q17 What do all those 'E-numbers' on food labels mean?
Q18 Where can I find out more about GM foods ?
Q19 What advice should I follow when using fresh shell eggs?
Q20 How do I cater for large functions from my home?
Q21 I think I have food poisoning - what should I do?
Q22How can I avoid food poisoning during barbecues?
A1 You firstly need to check whether the intended use will require you to make a planning application, the Development Control FAQ web page will be able to help you. Where structural changes are intended you should also visit the Building Control Office FAQ web page for further advice before commencing any works.
The business will also need to comply with current legislation and you should contact our Food Office for more detailed professional advice tailored to suit your particular proposals. All food businesses are required by law to register with the local authority where they are situated or based giving at least 28 days notice before trading. A food premises registration form can be downloaded from our Registration of Food Businesses web page or a copy requested from the Food/Health and Safety Section. Completed registration forms should be returned to the Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU .Registration is free.
The Food Standards Agency has produced a very useful booklet, "Starting up a food business" which is available in a number of different languages- Bengali; Chinese; English; Gujarati; Hindi; Punjabi; Thai; Turkish; Urdu and Welsh.
The booklets can be downloaded from http://www.food.gov.uk/enforcement/applicense/startingup/startingup
A2 A food business can sometimes be successfully run from home but firstly you must check whether the intended use will require you to make a planning application for the intended ‘change of use’- our Development Control Office FAQ web page will be able to help you. Where structural changes are intended you should also contact the Building Control Office FAQ web page will help guide you before you commencing any works that require permission.
The parts of your home intended to be used as a business will also need to comply with current legislation and you should contact our Food Office for more detailed professional advice on this. All food businesses are required by law to register with the local authority where they are situated or based giving at least 28 days notice before trading. A food premises registration form can be downloaded from our Food Premises Registration web page or requested from the Food/Health and Safety Section. The completed registration form should be returned to the Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU . Top of page.
A3 There is a national Food Code of Practice issued by the Food Standards Agency which requires food businesses having higher risks to be inspected more frequently. Gedling Borough Council follows this national system for inspection in its annual inspection programme. Routine inspections can be as often as every six months for higher risk premises and every 36 months for the lower rated ones. Top of page.
A4 Authorised Officers which includes Environmental Health Officers, Technical Officers and Trading Standards Officers have the right to enter and inspect food premises at all reasonable hours. In line with the national Code of Practice most inspections and visits are carried out without any advance notice.
The officers will look at the way you operate your business to identify potential hazards and to make sure the business complies with the law. They will discuss any problems with you and advise on possible solutions. They have wide enforcement powers which they will use to protect the public. Top of page.
A5 Officers will show their identification on arrival at the business, they will have a courteous manner and provide feedback from the inspection, such as information about hazards which have been identified and guidance on how they could be avoided. In their report and in any letter to you they will make a clear distinction between what the inspector is recommending you do because it is good practice and what you must do to comply with the law. Where remedial work is required a reasonable time will be given to meet statutory requirements, except where there is an immediate risk to public health. In any letter or notice you will be informed of the procedures for appealing against local authority action.
If you think the outcome is not fair you should first contact the Section Manager to the Food Office to see if the problem can be resolved informally. You may wish to write to the Section Manager, Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU in the first instance or to telephone 0115 9013827 or email foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk. This Authority also operates a complaints and compliments scheme- a copy of the leaflet can be obtained from the Complaints and Compliments web page. Top of page.
A6 Authorised officers have wide powers. They have the right to enter and inspect food premises at all reasonable hours and can take samples, photographs, and inspect records. They may write to you informally asking you to put right any problems they find. They can detain or seize suspect foods including imported foods. Where breaches of the law are identified that must be put right they can serve Hygiene Improvement Notices. In serious cases they may decide to recommend a prosecution and if the prosecution is successful, the Court may impose prohibitions on processes and the use of premises or equipment, fines and possibly imprisonment of the proprietor. If there is an immediate health risk to customers, inspectors can serve a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice which forbids the use of the premises, processes or equipment. Top of page.
A7 It is generally agreed that a mobile food vehicle should be registered with the local authority for the area where the vehicle is stored overnight. Top of page.
A8 No - if you run a mobile business you only need to register with the local council where the vehicle is garaged overnight. Do note however that while authorised food officers from the local council where your business is registered will mainly inspect your business each of the local councils in which you trade in the future are also entitled to inspect your business while you are trading in their area. Top of page.
A9 Schedule 4 of the Food Hygiene England Regulations 2006 contains the detailed temperature requirements and exemptions relating to foodstuffs. You should contact our Food Office at the Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU, telephone 0115 9013838 or email foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk to discuss your particular concern with an officer Top of page.
A10 The law requires that food businesses ensure their food handlers are supervised and instructed and/or trained in food hygiene matters commensurate with their work activity. Those with responsibility for the development and maintenance of HACCP must also have had received adequate training in the application of HACCP principles.
As the individual requirements for supervision, instruction and training vary across businesses you should contact the Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU, telephone number 0115 9013827 or email foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk for more tailored guidance. Top of page.
A11 This is done in several ways-during the inspection of food premises officers are concerned at the hygiene of food sold by the business and can take samples of food for microbial examination if necessary.Officers are particulalrly aware of potential issues poses by illegally imported foods, both of animal and non-animal origin and have wide powers to seize illegally imported foods. When we receive a complaint about any food sold in the area an officer will undertake an appropriate investigation to find out the cause of any problem and may require that specific action is carried out by the vendor to prevent a recurrence including sending off the item to an analyst. There is also a programme of specific food sampling (see question 3) undertaken each year. Fourthly, national food alerts issued by the Food Standards Agency inform local authorities of widespread concerns with specific foods-including contaminants, chemicals and wrong ingredients. Some alerts require that food businesses are contacted to inform them of problems. Top of page.
A12 Many people believe that wearing disposable gloves helps prevent the risk of cross contamination of foods due to staff hygiene and handling problems. In some circumstances gloves are of benefit but they must be changed frequently. The outside of the glove is just as likely to become contaminated as a hand so the gloves should be thrown away every time the food handler would normally wash their hands. Top of page.
A13 Despite the legal controls in this country to prevent food for sale becoming contaminated, damaged or too old a number of complaints occur and most are satisfactorily dealt with by the customer returning the food to the shop where it was purchased. The proprietor can apologise face to face and take the necessary action to prevent a recurrence to another customer.
From our experience consumers bringing a more serious food complaint to this Authority are concerned that;
·the food sold was dangerous (for example it contained sharp metal or glass), or could have made them ill (undercooked food for example);
·that the serious problem with the food should not happen to someone else; or
·they are concerned at the poor response from the shop when they have attempted to take the food back to the shop for redress.
If you have a complaint about mouldy, unfit food or food with a foreign object or which you suspect has made you ill please contact our Food Office- you can email us directly at foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk . Complaints about labelling, misleading food sales and quality issues should be made to Nottinghamshire County Council Trading Standards by telphone on 01623 452005 or by email at mansfield.tss@nottscc.gov.uk Top of page.
A14 In partnership with the other Nottinghamshire Food Authorities Gedling Borough Council has a food sampling programme largely based upon the national Local Authorities Co-ordinators Body of Regulatory Services (LACORS) sampling programme and supplemented by agreed local food sampling in the Notts area. Our Sampling web page (link) contains more information on the current programme and also asks for ideas from the public on future microbiological sampling areas. Top of page.
A15 All complaints relating to food hygiene matters within the Borough should be made to the Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU, telephone number 0115 9013827 or email foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk Your complaint will then be investigated by an enforcement officer who will take the appropriate action over the matter. In instances where legal action is taken you will be required to provide a statement to help with the prosecution. To top of page.
A16 'Best before' dates are used on foods with a long shelf life (for example, biscuits) and are for guidance only. 'Use by' dates are used on foods with a short shelf life (for example, packaged sandwiches and cooked meats). It is illegal to sell food after its 'use by' date due to the health risks associated in consuming such foods. Top of page.
A17 ‘E’ numbers designate chemicals that have been passed as safe for use in foods as flavourings, colourings, preservatives etc. within Europe. Unfortunately some people can be allergic to certain of these chemicals. More information on E numbers can be found on the Food Standards Agency website. Top of page.
A18 The website of the Food Standards Agency has a lot of information on this topic. Top of page.
A19 The Governments Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Safety of Food have recently published their report on salmonella in eggs. The report contains many recommendations, the following on the handling and storage of eggs. Eggs should be consumed within 3 weeks of laying and once purchased eggs should be stored in the refrigerator below 8°C. Raw eggs should not be uses for dishes that are not subject to further cooking prior to consumption e.g. mayonnaise, tiramisu, ice cream etc. Cracked eggs should not be used. Hands should always be washed before and after handling shelled eggs. Despite positive steps having been made to reduce the incidence of salmonella in eggs the advice issued in October 1990 by the Department of Health still stands and that, "Everyone should avoid eating raw eggs or uncooked dishes made from them. Vulnerable groups such as the elderly, the sick, babies, toddlers and pregnant women, should make sure that any eggs they eat are thoroughly cooked until the white and yolk are solid. However for healthy people there is very little risk from eating eggs which are lightly cooked whether boiled, fried, scrambled or poached." More recently the Food Standards Agency has run a survey (between November 2005 and January 2007) analysing 1588 samples of six shell eggs used in caterers. The results of the survey identified the presence of salmonella in only six samples, five of which had been produced in the UK. Top of page.
A20 There are a number of important steps to bear in mind when planning the catering for a large function-these include:
·Plan the catering carefully ahead of time.
·Ensure adequate and proper temperature control is available for the food.
·Ensure foods are hygienically prepared and cooked where appropriate.
·Avoid contaminating prepared food.
·Don't let raw foods like meat or poultry or unwashed fruit, vegetables and salads come into contact with food that is ready to eat.
·Wash your hands thoroughly before touching foods and after handling raw foods like meat and poultry.
·Discard leftovers from the event.
Our website contains a page giving more advice on catering for large occasions .You may also wish to discuss any specific concerns with an officer from the he Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU, telephone number 0115 9013827 or email foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk. Top of page.
A21 You are advised to contact your GP as soon as possible. The doctor will assess your condition and may decide to notify your illness as suspected food poisoning to the Health Protection Agency for further investigation. If your illness is thought to be related to a food outlet in a local area or is part of an outbreak then the Health Protection Agency will inform the local authorities involved.
Your GP may also ask you to provide a faecal specimen to find out what particular form of food poisoning you are suffering from. If you work with food or with young children, the elderly or with patients or have a child who is ill with food poisoning then there is a particular risk of the illness being passed on to others and will be given specific advice by either your GP, the Health Protection Agency or your local authority including when you can return to work, or a child can return to nursery or school. In some cases repeated infection clear faecal specimens are required before return to work, nursery or school is possible.
While you are ill personal hygiene is very important as some forms of food poisoning can be passed by person to person spread or from touching taps, handles and sharing hand towels etc. It is also possible to pass on some illnesses during food preparation, particularly if hand washing is not scrupulously practiced while you are still infectious.
People often associate their illness with the last meal they ate before becoming ill, unfortunately experience shows that this proves not to be the case most of the time. Top of page.
A22 Frozen and raw poultry, red meat and fish often have food poisoning bacteria on them which only thorough cooking will destroy. Whenever you have handled frozen and raw poultry, red meat and fish always wash you hands well using soap and hot water. This stops bacteria then transferring onto the next foods that you touch. Always wash plates and implements that have come into contact with the frozen and raw foods and sanitise work contact surfaces to similarly prevent the contamination of other foods at a later time.
Always cook foods well, ensuring that barbecued food is not burnt on the outside but undercooked inside. Cooking the food in an oven and finishing off on a barbecue is a good idea to ensure thorough cooking. Meat and chicken should not appear pink inside or have blood running from it as this indicates that the food is not sufficiently cooked.
It is always advisable to eat cooked food right away and never reheat meats, rice or pasta that have been allowed to cool down outside refrigerated temperatures.
These few rules will help you prevent food poisoning at barbecues. A leaflet giving food hygiene barbecue advicecan be downloaded here (pdf document 94 KB)-further hygiene advice can be obtained by contacting the Food/Health and Safety Section, Planning and Environment Department, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU.Telephone 0115 9013827 or by email to foodsafety@gedling.gov.uk. Top of page.
A23 The Environmental Protection Section at Gedling Borough Council investigates complaints about odours.Their contact details are the Environmental Protection Section, Gedling Borough Council, Civic Centre, Arnot Hill Park, Nottingham Road, Arnold, Notts, NG5 6LU. Telephone (0115) 9013832 and Email environmentalhealth@gedling.gov.uk .Top of page.
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